Can summer be far away? There is lots of activity at Whale’s Tale Water Park. Workers are in revival mode — preening, painting and repairing the sleeping giant. It won’t be long now before throngs of kids line the stairways to water slide heaven! With the temps hitting the 90’s this week I’m sure they’d have been pretty busy if they’d been open. A few hot days in April makes us all long for summer, but it will be June before they get the place in tip top shape. Until then, we can all ride the waves and shoot the slides in our dreams.

— Steve

I’ve seen 6 moose in the last 2 days. I’m sure if I went out moose-spotting again tonight I’d see more. They seem to be everywhere. Mary and I went moose-spotting last night around 7:30. We headed toward Rt. 2 in Jefferson via some lonely dirt road that intersected with the road to Jefferson Notch. We saved that treacherous (but beautiful) stretch of road for a bit later in the spring. For now we were headed in the direction of Gorham on the Valley Rd. in Jefferson along the Israel’s River. No moose. When we reached Rt. 2 we headed west, and then took a left on 115, heading for home. It was dark now, but we were still on the lookout for moose, this time hoping we didn’t find one in the middle of the road. We crept along at about 40 mph and suddenly — about a mile from where we turned — we saw a dark shadow against the woods to our left. There he (she?) was, nibbling away at the salty grass on the opposite side of the road. I made a u-turn and pulled up beside the gnarly creature. It was a yearling — just separated from its mother most likely. It’s that time of year where the year-old calves separate from their mothers before the spring birthing season. We sat for a while watching with the lights from the car illuminating the little (ok, it’s still a moose —  he’s not *that* little) guy. Then Mary opened her window and started talking and his ears came to life  — flicking and bending on every word for about 5 minutes; he then obviously got bored with the conversation and began to walk south along the highway. I guess this was our signal to head home. We were annoying him most likely, but we did get to see our moose.

I’ve seen 5 others. At 5:30 am, on my way to work, I saw a bull moose — antlerless at this time of year — in the field near our house. Then as I was headed along Rt. 3 toward Franconia Notch I saw a mother and yearling feeding along the side of the road. I rarely stop because I always feel as though I’m annoying them. That was 4 moose in one day.

This morning as I drove toward the Upper Falls of the Ammonoosuc River for a short hike I saw another mother and calf standing in a swampy area just off the road. They looked up as I slowed but continued to do what moose do at 6am which is to just stand still doing very little as they wait for tourists to stop and take pictures. The waters are running wild and high right now as the snows are rapidly melting off the Presidentials. It’s a great time to take in the rapids and gorges in the area. The roar of the water is amazing, but the trails are still a quagmire with lingering patches of ice to make walking just a bit more interesting.
Did I mention I saw a fisher cat too?

— Steve

Loon Mountain officially closed yesterday — 12 April — for the season. On my way to the restaurant, I spotted two moose in Franconia Notch, and one of the bears was out of hibernation and standing on a perch over at Clark’s Trading Post. Mount Washington is still covered in snow, the grass is still brown and there are no signs of buds on the trees, but I’m hopeful that spring green will make an appearance soon!

What does this mean at King’s Corner? Well, just because the mountain is closed doesn’t mean we are! We’re here year ’round, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year. This past weekend we had fresh strawberries and asparagus, and the Southwestern corn chowder and cornbread was flying out the door. We’ve had visitors from Maryland, the UK and Israel. And of course lots of folks from southern New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Vermont and Maine. We’re gearing up for Patriot’s Day and school vacation week and hoping that we’ll have some great spring hiking weather for everyone to enjoy.

If you’re in the area, be sure to stop in and say hello! And we’ll tell you the best places for moose-spotting.

— Mary

That’s what we’ve been this week! The three-day Presidents’ Day weekend was the start of February school vacation week for most kids in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, and lots of families headed to Lincoln New Hampshire for a week of skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, winter hiking, and relaxing in front of a warm fire while the snow falls outside.

While that may sound too picturesque to be true, we’ve had fantastic weather this week and it continues to look like a fantasy winter wonderland here in the White Mountains.

We started off the long weekend by introducing our new comment cards. Unlike a traditional comment card where the customer would check off a few boxes and then leave it on the table, these cards are meant to be taken with you as a reminder to spread the word about your great experience at King’s Corner Café. There’s also a link to a survey which, if completed, will get you a coupon good for $2 off your next meal (there’s an extra unadvertised bonus if you’re a local). We ask if we failed to meet your expectations in any way that you let us know so we can not only make it right, but ensure that we fix the problem so it doesn’t happen again.

So what’s the result so far? While we’re accustomed to folks telling us how much they enjoyed our food, our staff, and our atmosphere, we’re noticing lots more people are taking the time to tell us how much they enjoyed their visit. We’re also starting to see some surveys come in, as well as Yelp reviews being posted.

There’s still another week of school vacation to go — most New Hampshire and Vermont districts started their vacation today. That means it’s going to be another busy weekend and busier-than-usual week, and we’re looking forward to meeting more future ambassadors for King’s Corner Café.

— Mary

Looking for a place to stay that’s off the beaten path yet convenient to everything the White Mountans have to offer? Set in Thornton Gore, this four-season log house is rustic and comfortable. It sits halfway up a grassy knoll, surrounded by open-field farm land and the White Mountain National Forest. Johnson Brook runs next to the dirt road. It has an open kitchen-dining area, a large living room with cathedral ceiling and a fieldstone fireplace. Is this the place for you when you visit the White Mountains and the Lincoln/Woodstock area?

It was -15°F on Thursday, with about 2 feet of snow on the ground, and the sky was a glorious shade of blue so I packed up the camera, convinced the car to start, and headed East from Bethlehem on Route 302.

Bethlehem is about a 25 minute ride from King’s Corner Cafe — the northern side of the White Mountains, or as we say here, “above the Notch.” The drive will take you through Franconia Notch, past the Flume and the Basin, Cannon Mountain and Mt Lafayette, past Mt Agassiz, and over the Gale River. A few years ago it would also have taken you past the “Old Man of the Mountain,” but, alas, he met his demise in 2003.

If you continue East on 302 you’ll eventually end up at the Atlantic Ocean, but I was only planning a 15-minute drive to Carroll.

Enjoy the photo tour!

I hope you enjoyed the ride!